The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom has dominated the gaming landscape of 2023 due to its robust physics system, breathtaking open world, and cinematic storytelling. The Zelda franchise has long been a fan-favorite and Tears of the Kingdom delivered on much that fans had been hoping for.
Though Tears of the Kingdom was released to critical and public acclaim, players have begun to notice the game's shortcomings. Whether they be game design choices that fail in the late game or foundational narrative decisions that falter under critical examination, some of the largest problems of Tears of the Kingdom go unacknowledged.
The following contains spoilers for Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, now available on Nintendo Switch.
10 The Iconic Triforce Barely Gets A Nod
The graphic representing the Zelda series has long been the Triforce, a simple visual of three equilateral triangles forming a larger triangle. Zelda lore dictates that when the three pieces of the Triforce — Power, Wisdom, and Courage — are put together, the holder is granted access to the power of the Goddess of Hyrule.
The dynamic between the three pieces of the Triforce is thematically satisfying: Power attempts to control everything but is ultimately defeated when Wisdom and Courage join forces against it. Tears of the Kingdom replaces the Triforce with Secret Stones wielded by the Sages of Hyrule, forgoing the simplicity of the Triforce for more specific world-building. Though the Triforce gets a subtle shout-out in the game's Goddess Springs, Tears of the Kingdom never mentions the Triforce in the mainline story.
9 Players Need A Guide To Collect All Korok Seeds
Dotted throughout the map of Tears of the Kingdom are Korok seeds, rewards for overworld puzzles that are used to increase inventory size. Players can find them by traversing to difficult-to-reach locations or by completing small physics challenges. Each time Korok seeds are used to increase the weapon, bow, or shield inventory, it takes even more seeds to upgrade that inventory again.
Finding all 1,000 of the Korok seeds in the game's massive map is an incredibly arduous task and the only in-game resource for finding them is a late-game armor item. The Korok seed system works in the game's favor in casual playthroughs because it is easy to stumble on plenty of seeds. Gamers interested in 100% completion must either resort to using an external guide or they have to scour the map looking for easily missable Korok indicators.
8 Gathering Zonaite Is An Uninteresting Grind
One of the most exciting new elements in Tears of the Kingdom is the addition of Zonai devices. Zonai devices are mechanical items like wheels or a fire hydrant that have unique interactions with the physical world of Tears of the Kingdom. The possibilities for Zonai devices are limitless, and the internet is full of fans' spectacular Zonai creations.
Zonai devices require the in-game resource Zonaite for two main functions. All Zonai devices use Link's Battery Cell, which needs large amounts of Zonaite to upgrade, and the Autobuild ability, which quickly recreates a recently built Zonai creation, uses Zonaite to reform missing parts. Unfortunately, Zonaite can only be mined from the Depths or Sky Islands or obtained from killing Gloom enemies and both methods only give a few Zonaite at a time.
7 There Is A Large Imbalance In Armor Set Bonuses
Finding and using different armor sets has long been a tenet of the Zelda series and Tears of the Kingdom offers more outfits for the Hylian Champion than ever before. Some armor sets like the Snowquill set protect against the cold while others like the Time set are references to previous Zelda games, in this case, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time.
Armor sets that have been upgraded twice gain an armor bonus when all pieces are worn together. The Zonaite armor set decreases Zonai device energy consumption and its bonus recharges the Battery Cell faster, making it an extremely valuable set. Several sets have no effects or bonuses at all and other sets are only relevant under certain weather conditions.
6 Great Weapons Don't Last
In the world of Tears of the Kingdom, Ganon's power has corrupted the weapons of Hyrule, rendering them useless on their own. Link must use the Fuse ability to attach items to the corrupted weapons to give them more damage. Weapons have limited durability, so Link must constantly search for weapons and fusible parts to keep up.
Monster parts make the most powerful fusible items and the most powerful monsters drop the best parts. However, powerful monsters, like Lynels and Gleeoks, are relatively rare and, due to their high health, take about as many weapons to kill as they might drop in fusible parts. The durability system works well when players have to think quickly with limited options, but Tears of the Kingdom doesn't make it clear when to use one's best weapons.
5 The Yiga Clan Uses Zonai Devices Without Batteries
The Yiga Clan serves as one of Link's main antagonists in Tears of the Kingdom. In their new iteration, the Yiga Clan has planted themselves in the Depths and has begun experimenting with Zonai technology to devise new ways to defeat Link. Link can get Zonai upgrades, like Crystallized Charges and Yiga Schematics, by taking on the Yiga Clan's outposts.
Yiga Clan encounters in the Depths show them using Zonai devices as battle vehicles and devious traps. Mechanically, this not only makes combat more interesting but also teaches the player different ways of using Zonai devices. Within the game's story, however, it is never clarified how the Yiga Clan can attach Zonai devices without access to the Ultrahand ability or how the Zonai devices can function without batteries.
4 Zelda Is Still A Secondary Character In The Zelda Series
In Tears of the Kingdom, Zelda and Link start their adventure together, spelunking in ancient tunnels underneath Hyrule Castle. After discovering Ganon, Link and Zelda are separated into two different time periods. Zelda is transported to the distant past during the time of the Imprisoning War while Link stays in the present, getting only glimpses of Zelda's journey during Dragon's Tear cutscenes.
The Dragon's Tear quest is listed as a main quest but, it is only an optional part of Tears of the Kingdom. Zelda sees a terrible war unfold before her and ultimately sacrifices her personhood for thousands of years to repair the Master Sword. In the main story of Tears of the Kingdom, there is never a moment where players get to see Zelda's point of view.
3 Many Zonai Devices Are Pretty Much Useless
Link has Zonai devices for almost every situation he finds himself in. If he wants to travel long distances, he can use some Big Wheels and a Steering Stick to build himself a car. If he wants to climb a mountain, he can glide up using a fan or fly up using a Rocket. For combat, there are Flame Emitters, Cannons, self-guided Homing Carts, and more.
Many Zonai devices are only useful in niche cases, like the Hydrant, or are less effective than the game's other solutions, like the Spring. Zonai Devices provide a wealth of options, but it's usually quicker and easier to use Link's abilities like fast travel, Ascend, or Fused weapons. Tears of the Kingdom does not provide enough uses for its own Zonai mechanics.
2 The Cooking System Is Cumbersome And Obsolete In The Late Game
Link can cook up many of the consumables in the land of Hyrule, such as bugs, monster parts, and foods to help him on his quest. The cooking system in Tears of the Kingdom is the primary way to restore hearts and rare ingredients will also give Link powerful status boosts.
There is no way to farm ingredients without reloading an area again and again and many ingredients are needed to upgrade armor or beef up weapons, especially monster parts. Once players have gotten enough armor, they can instantly switch their outfits for different status boosts without having to worry about consumables or duration.
1 Ganon's Motivation Is Vague And Unsatisfying
The Ganons of older Zelda titles had clear backstories that explain why Ganon wants to destroy Hyrule. Ganondorf in The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker delivers a moving speech about his jealousy of the lushness of Hyrule and how he wants to make Hylians suffer the way he suffered living in the desert. Zelda: Breath of the Wild goes in a different direction, turning Ganon into Calamity Ganon and painting him as a force of nature that corrupts the technology of the Hylians.
In Tears of the Kingdom, Ganon wants to take over Hyrule as King of the Gerudo but as the Demon King, he wants to spread monsters and his dark power. Ganon's motivation in Tears of the Kingdom abruptly changes from political to spiritual, making him a confusing character and obscuring the game's themes.